RoastPATH - Roast Replay

Automated Coffee Roasting UI

Overview

RoastPATH gives coffee roasters total control of how they manage their coffee roasting. One of the most important features is the ability for users to track their temperatures, fuel level, and fan speed in real-time. Once a roast is developed and that information is stored, RoastPATH can use this data to replicate the roasting process. For this project, I created an interface that lets users automate their work and observe the changes happening to their roast and let them make changes on the fly.

Problem

Coffee roasters frequently roast many batches of coffee following a very specific process to regulate the temperature of the product to ensure consistent development of flavor. This process can require very precise timing and hand-written documentation of how roasts are performed. Master roasters have a hard time delegating their process to less experienced employees.

Solution

Analyze the roasting process to better understand the pain points of the process and design a system that automatically records notes on adjustments to the process. This system should be able to replay the process and automate the inputs and adjustments to the roast according to a set plan.

Tools Used

Figma
Miro
Illustrator
Photoshop
Google Office

Role

UX Designer
UI Designer

Timeline

3 Months

Final Roast Replay Prototype

This is the roast replay design that was handed off to the developers.

RESEARCH

Roasting is a sensory process. Coffee roasters rely on their eyes and their noses to tell them when the coffee is ready. They use a device called a trier to see how the coffee is developing over the course of a roast. Every once in a while they will pull beans out with the trier to smell them and examine their color. To track this process, roasters use detailed notes so they can easily replicate roasts and maintain a consistent product.

It seemed like the most logical place to start was to examine these notes and figure out how we can translate that process to the RoastPATH app.

Lauren's Notes

Bryant's Notes

Terminology Notes

Roasting Worksheet

SKETCHES

I drew out some ideas for how these notes could be translated to a screen. I tried to explore how a user to could move through the process and how all the data could be represented. I felt that using cards would be the best way to show the timeline of events.